A new trial session will be held for ‘torture t-shirt’ detainee Mahmoud Hussein on Thursday and it is expected that his detention would be renewed for another month and a half. His previous 45-day detention extension will conclude on Thursday, marking 620 days since he was imprisoned.
Hussein’s latest appeal by his lawyers against his imprisonment was rejected by the court on 2 September. The upcoming session is the 24th of its kind, as Hussein remains in remand without his case ever going to court, and without him even appearing in renewal session.
His brother and member of the freedoms and rights committee at Al-Dostour Party, Tarek Tito, described the situation as a “detention warrant under an emergency state disguised in the form of pre-trial detention”, which has become a punishment in itself for many cases such as those involving photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid ‘Shawkan’.
A number of prominent young political activists were released from jail in September, after being granted a presidential pardon. Although the pardon was applied on some who are still in pre-trial detention due to their health conditions, neither Hussein nor Shawkan were freed.
“Hussein was happy that those unfairly jailed were out, hoping his turn would come, along with all prisoners of conscience,” Tito told Daily News Egypt on Wednesday.
Tito further called on recently appointed Prosecutor General Nabil Sadek to re-open the files of those under remand “because they number in thousands”.
